Trademark

How to spell trademark

9 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce trademark

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does trademark mean?

1. nounA symbol, word, or design legally registered to identify a company's goods or services.
2. verbTo register a name, symbol, or phrase for legal protection as a brand.
3. adjectiveDistinctive and instantly associated with a particular person or thing.

Trademark in a sentence

• noun

  The company registered its logo as a trademark to stop imitators.

• verb

  The startup rushed to trademark its slogan before launching the product.

• adjective

  The comedian greeted the crowd with his trademark grin.

• noun

  Using another firm's trademark without permission can lead to a lawsuit.

• verb

  You should trademark the brand name to protect it from competitors.

• adjective

  The chef finished the dish with her trademark drizzle of olive oil.

Where does trademark come from?

Language of origin: Germanic

This is a transparent English compound that joins two old native words: trade and mark. Trade descends from a Middle Low German and Middle Dutch word meaning a track, course, or way, which broadened into the sense of regular commerce and dealing. Mark goes back to the Old English mearc, meaning a boundary, sign, or token, the same root that gives us the verb to mark and the German Mark. The two were yoked together in the early nineteenth century to name the distinctive sign or symbol a manufacturer stamped on goods to identify their source. Because both halves are everyday words, the spelling is regular; the only thing to remember is that it is written as one solid word, not two words or a hyphenated pair.

How the word is built

• trade (commerce, dealing)
• mark (sign, token)